South Tangerang, Banten (ANTARA News) - Indonesia is targeting the third position in the global footwear industry, by improving its current position as the fourth country after China, India, and Vietnam.

"This year, we are targeting to enter the big three, supported by government interventions and ease of doing business," Industry Ministry`s Small and Medium Industries for Fashion and Crafts director, E. Ratna Utarianingrum, stated during a Makers Talk held at the Prasetya Mulya University, South Tangerang, on Tuesday.

According to her, 86 percent of the footwear in the world is produced by Asian countries, where China takes 80 percent of the total production, while the other 6 percent is produced by India, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

"Our market share is 3.3 percent globally," she remarked.

However, the total production of footwear in Indonesia differs slightly from Vietnam, which is at the third position.

Indonesia`s footwear production has reached 1.1 billion pairs per year, of which 800 million pairs are for domestic use and the rest for export, with main destinations including Europe and the United States.

Meanwhile, the total production of footwear in Vietnam has reached 1.2 billion pairs per year, and most of it is exported to various countries.

In addition to its superiority in terms of the total production, Vietnam is also benefited by its closer geographical position to China, which allows its easy access to the export market.

Indonesia will continue to increase its capacity in footwear industry, from the design, management, and distribution, in order to be able to compete with Vietnam.

Through the Indonesian Footwear Industry Development Center (BPIPI) at the ministry, the government seeks to increase the skills of national shoe craftsmen, whose alumni have reached eight thousand people since its establishment in 2009.

In addition to recognizing new shoe entrepreneurs, the center also provides coaching program for crafters to run their business and tackle various problems, Utarianingrum added.

Reported by Sella P. Gareta
(Y013/INE)
(T.Y013/A/KR-BSR/A014)

Reporter: antara
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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